Ghost of Side 5
by rdc30
Summary: Follow the story of Ensign Thalia Lisara from the Battle of Loum to the Fall of Soloman and beyond as she struggles to survive both battles with the Earth Federation and the dangerous political intrigues of the Zeon nobility.
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's Note:**_** This story was something I thought up a couple days ago and I decided to post this first section as a sort of teaser for the full story. I hope you enjoy this chapter and come back in the future for more. Any help and advice is greatly appreciated and reviews are always welcome. **

The battle for control of space fortress Solomon was starting to die down. The area was choked with wreckage and other space debris which will make Solomon a navigational hazard for years to come. For every one body that will be recovered from the battle, another four families will never see their loved one again.

Federation forces were starting to board the asteroid fortress and the remaining Zeon defenders were being quickly overwhelmed as they slowly fell back to the heart of the fortress in order to make their final stand. They would not surrender because every second they held out would give the surviving Zeon fleets time to regroup and escape.

The beam interference field the Federation had deployed earlier in the battle had all but dispersed and the defenders used every beam cannon that remained on the station to destroy as many enemies as they could. Their few remaining Doms fought to stall the new Federation mobile suits while their weaker Zakus provided fire support. Most of the Doms and Goufs had been ordered to retreat by Admiral Dozle Zabi. They knew the war depended on the more advanced mobile suits, because they will never be able to outnumber the Federation military at this point in the war. The old Zaku II that were the symbol of Zeon military superiority were now being abandoned to buy time for the new machines to escape and fight another day.

* * *

Fire Team 09 moved into Solomon as part of the first assault wave. The team's five GMs landed on one of the few remaining space docks and immediately moved to secure the area for reinforcements to land. Admiral Watkein wanted the fortress secured as soon as possible to prevent the remaining Zeon forces from scuttling the base.

As the team prepared to move further into the station, a massive beam of energy fired from the rear of the dock and destroyed two mobile suits instantly. The remaining team members immediately turned their attention toward the source of the beam and watched in silent horror as a massive monstrosity emerged from a maintenance hangar. The machine was huge, easily larger than the entire fire team put together, and its two small legs held up a squat body with a huge energy beam emitter in the center.

The remaining fire team members immediately open fire with their beam rifles.

* * *

Sub-Lieutenant Thalia Lisara moved the MA-08 'Big Zam' forward as she struggled to keep the massive mobile armor balanced. The machine was never designed for combat operations under gravity and she had to get the machine out of the dock before it suffered a lucky hit to its legs, which would instantly cripple the machine and put a premature end to the last defiant charge of the Silver Phantom of Side 5.

"How long until the particle cannon recharges?" She asked the weapons operator as the machine rocked under the combined fire of the three Federation GMs. "We can't leave until it's ready to fire or we'll be overwhelmed by missile attacks from the capital ships."

"Sorry ma'am, I shouldn't have used the cannon, there's still a twenty second wait until the cannon's charged." Ensign Stevenson apologied. "Should I activate the point-defense particle guns?"

"Do it, and arm the missiles while you're at it. Ops, how's that barrier holding up under this amount of fire?" Thalia asked as a beam hit the Big Zam's leg joint but failed to penetrate. "If it can't take these small hits, the capital ships will destroy us with combined fire before we can we get within firing range."

"The field is holding steady ma'am, and the thrusters are online." Ensign Takona reported then he hesitated for a split second before adding, "ma'am, I'm receiving a communication from Admiral Dozle. He wants us to wait in the dock for another minute."

That caught Thalia off-guard, why would the Admiral order them to wait? The Feddies were practically on top of the station already and soon they would be swarmed in enemies. Thalia shook her head, it wasn't her place to question the Admiral. He had never let them down before so she owed him her trust.

Stevenson opened fire with the particle guns as soon as the system booted up from storage mode and the rapid fire beams tore the three remaining GMs apart.

Thalia wrestled the Big Zam into the center of the dock and turned towards the gate. Any ships or mobile suits that tried to enter the dock would be destroyed by the particle cannon of the experimental mobile armor. Thalia was rather saddened by the fact that Zeon scientists won't get any combat records of the Big Zam. They had sent the new weapon to Solomon hoping for one of the aces to take it out and bring back for further improvement but now it seems that all it would accomplish was saving the lives of thousands of Zeon soldiers and civilians instead of changing the war like they hoped.

Thalia was woken from her musings as she noticed a man in a Zeon space suit exit the elevator behind the Big Zam and run towards them. Thalia retracted the Big Zam's legs and lowered the machine to the ground. Takona unlocked the back hatch and Thalia unbuckled herself from the command throne and moved to greet their visitor. She was curious what this whole situation was about and fought to keep her irritation from showing on her face.

As the man climbed into the Big Zam's command cabin, Thalia sealed the door and the interior re-pressurized. The man moved to take off his helmet and mentioned for Thalia to do the same. Confused, she unsealed her helmet and pulled it off, taking a moment to fix her ponytail before turning her attention back to their new crew member.

Shock, horror and confusion fought to determine which one should dominate her face as she saw who the man was. The hard face, the scar and the prematurely graying hair. Vice Admiral Dozle Zabi, commander of Zeon Space Forces, commandant of Solomon and a member of the Zabi royal family.

Thalia quickly snapped out of her shock and saluted. "Admiral Dozle, sir! What are you doing here? Your shuttle deported half an hour ago with your family, I thought you went with them sir." Thalia stated her confusion as she tried to guess what the Admiral was planning. Did he want the Big Zam to follow the fleet? No, the Massive Mobile armor won't be able to keep up.

Admiral Dozle gave her a sad smile that froze Thalia's heart and she instantly realized what the Admiral was planning.

"Sir, you can't do this! The war needs your leadership, especially now with the Federation's mobile suit advantage. Moral won't be able to stand your death, especially after…" Thalia nearly chocked as she desperately tried to convince the Admiral that was a bad idea.

"Thalia, it has been an honor and a privilege to serve with you these past few months and no, there's nothing you can say that will change my mind."

Thalia felt tears fill her eyes as she fought to retain her composure. "The honor has been mine, Admiral. But what of your family? Did they link up with the fleet?"

Admiral Dozle's face fell and Thalia thought he suddenly looked extremely tired for the first time in what must have been years. "They're fine. I ordered the captain to take them to Side 3 immediately and link up with Shin."

Suddenly, an explosion rocked the entire fortress and Thalia moved to co-pilot's chair and offered the command throne to the Admiral. "Sir, I advise strap in, we'll be launching immediately."

"Thalia, I'm promoting you to the rank of Lieutenant and I order you to exit this mobile armor and link up with Lieutenant Commander Gato. Protect the refugees and make sure my family is safe."

The entire cabin was silent as Thalia stared down at the controls, unsure of how to proceed. After what seemed like an eternity, she glanced around at her comrades. Both ensigns were looking at her and nodded as they caught her eyes. Finally, she looked at Admiral Dozle.

"Sir, I'm afraid I cannot follow that order. Military doctrine dictates that if superior officer acts in ways which harm the war-effort, his subordinates are duty-bound to disobey." Thalia fought to keep her voice steady as she spoke. "For you to order me to leave must mean that you have no intention of surviving, which will cripple the Zeon war effort. Admiral Dozle Zabi, I hereby remove you from command and I order you to take my mobile suit and link up with the fleet while I cover your escape."

Admiral Dozle gave her a sad smile and reached into his pocket. "Thalia, please, you're young and you desire to have a full life, not die here. I've already experienced everything a man needs in his life. I can die happily knowing that my wife and daughter are safe." He took out a ring and handed it to Thalia. "Tell Zenna I love her and our daughter. Tell her that I'm sorry I won't be around to comfort her in these difficult times. And tell Minerva when she's older that I love her and want to make this world a better place for her generation."

Thalia felt tears fall down her cheeks as she reached a shaking hand to take Admiral Dozle's wedding ring and placed it in her breast pocket. She struggled to form words but nothing came to mind. So she snapped a salute and stated, "I understand Admiral, while I still live, I won't allow your family to come to harm nor will I allow your dream to perish."

Admiral Dozle moved to return her salute, then hesitated, before suddenly catching her in a embrace/ The big man towered over her and his arms easily wrapped around her.

Thalia finally broke into light sobs as she returned the hug. As sudden as the embrace occured did it end and Thalia quickly climbed out of the Big Zam before she lost her composure and changed her mind about leaving.

* * *

Thalia ran across the dock and saw the familiar sight of her silver colored MS-14Jg Gelgoog Jager. As Thalia climbed the support scaffolds which were used to maintain the experimental new mobile suit, she felt the station shake and turned around in time to see the Big Zam fire its main thrusters and lift out of the dock.

As Thalia entered the cockpit of the Gelgoog, she quickly powered up the nuclear reactor powering the machine and smiled when she noticed that the techs had replaced her fuel tanks before they evacuated. As she strapped herself in, she activated the new experimental interface that High Command had built into the machine. A momentary sense of intense vertigo seized her and then a new sensation entered her mind. It felt like she was actually seeing what the primary head-cam of her machine was witnessing instead of merely seeing it on her cockpit display. The new sensory input would have overwhelmed a normal person but Thalia wasn't exactly normal.

Quickly brushing such thoughts away from the moment, she activated her machine's thrusters and blasted out of the dock. As she left Solomon behind her, her sensors detected the Big Zam racing towards the main Federation fleet and she noted with pain that most of the ships were moving to surround it.

Opening a channel with the Admiral, she quickly asked, "Lieutenant Lisara to Admiral Dozle, you're being surrounded, do you want me to provide some fire support before I withdraw?" She already knew what the Admiral's answer would be deep in her heart but she still asked, hoping he would change his mind.

"No Lieutenant, I've managed to punch through the blockade but the enemy fleet is regrouping. I'll try to take out their command ship and give you some time to pick up Stevenson and Takona, just lock onto their emergency beacon, they aren't far from your position. As soon as they're on board, you are to link up with the fleet. Is that understood?"

"Yes Admiral, I read you. It has been an honor and I wish you luck. I'll see you on the other side, Admiral."

"The honor's been mine Lieutenant, and I hope that day is long in the coming."

_**Author's Note:**_** And there it is! The Battle of Solomon. I've already drafted up 2 more chapters and will get them posted as soon as I can. However, know that I am in college so I have other priorities and the time I have to write is in constant flux. The full story will kinda start with the Thalia in her youth, growing up under Zeon propaganda. It will really begin at the Battle of Loum.**


	2. Chapter 2

~ UC 0068 ~ Zum City ~ Side 3

The streets of Zum City, and every other colony of Side 3, were lined with citizens. They were gathered to mourn the death of their leader, Prime Minister Zeon Zum Deikun. Indeed, many saw Zum Deikun as more of a mystical messiah than a political leader. The normally beautiful space colony seemed to be smothered with a sense of depression as the sound of fanatical wailing and cries of despair filled the air.

Minister of War Theresa Lisara's face twisted into a snarl beyond her funeral veil as she thought about the man they were honoring. She respected Zum Deikun enough for his charisma and leadership to know that he did not desire to have his corpse paraded throughout the streets of every colony in Side 3.

The official funeral train stood at attention in two parallel lines before the primary space gate of Zum City and waited as a crystal casket drawn by four horses descended the ramp of the former Prime Minister's personal shuttle. The man's coffin was followed by a train of the Republic's most prominent people. Theresa noted sadly that the man's family was following behind the crystal casket.

Surprisingly, the family was not the ones closest to their loved one's body. That honor was taken by Zeon's old Chief of Staff, Degwin Zabi. Theresa was stunned momentarily as she noticed that the entire Zabi family seemed to act as the honor guards to the casket indeed of the man's own family.

Degwin Zabi had crowned himself 'Reagent of the Zeon Republic' immediately after Zum Deikun's death, even before the doctors had proclaimed the man 'clinically deceased'. In truth, the man had held power long before Zum Deikun had died, maybe even before the man had fallen ill. When Zum Deikun had named him as successor, Theresa was not in the least bit surprised. Degwin Zabi was considered a moderate by most, probably chosen to try and bridge the gap between the hardline war hawks and the pacifists.

Theresa was relatively impressed with the way the man had asserted his leadership and how fast he had taken the over Zum Deikun's duties. Of course, she was perfectly aware of the rumors surrounding the man's connection to the Prime Minister's death. Theresa could not convince herself that the man was innocent but it hardly mattered now and she found that she did not really care. She had often clashed with Zum Deikon over his stubborn stance on violence.

Most people thought the man was an enlightened saint but the people close to him knew the truth. The man was too idealistic to act as a political leader. He believed that strength of soul and right of way will put food on the table and cloth on their backs. His indecision in the face of the Federation trade embargo was a testament to his failures as a leader. A leader needed to put the lives of his citizens before any foolish idealistic notion of spiritual purity.

The truth of the matter was simply that Spacenoids deserved their independence and their old oppressors refuse to give it to them. The citizens of Side 3 were suffering and the corrupt leaders of Earth would rather them all starve to death than allow them political independence. There was only one logical outcome to this entire scenario. Either Side 3 becomes self-sufficient, in which case, the Federation will use force to bring them back under control, or they take what they need from Earth and the other colonies via conquest. Whatever happens, war was eminent.

As the entourage moved down the space dock and into Zum City proper, Theresa took her place behind the casket as the Zabi family took to the right side and Zum Deikun's took the left. The funeral train entered the streets of the colony and Theresa was momentarily deafened by the roar of sorrow as the citizens of Zeon poured out all their bottled misery. Theresa realized that the people were at a crossroad that will soon decide the fate of the entire Earth Sphere.

The situation in Side 3 was rapidly deteriorating as the Federation embargo all but stopped the flow of vital resources and material needed to maintain the space colonies. The few ships from Jupiter bearing the resources vital in nuclear fusion were being stopped by Federation warships and seized. Trade revenue was now non-existent and the state treasury will soon run dry. Worst of all, the initial surge of immigration to Side 3 due to the promise of freedom was now straining their supplies to the breaking point.

The question now was will the people submit to their oppressors and return to the comfort of servitude or will they defy the Federation and adapt?

Theresa knew it was a moot question because she already knew what will happen. She knew that the coming times will be hard but her pride refused to admit defeat.

She turned her attention to the man who shared her views. He seemed to sense her attention, or maybe he was constantly watching all those around him, figuratively and literally, because he immediately turned his face in her direction and then slowed his pace enough that he was soon next to her.

"Admiral Lisara, it is a sad day is it not? The father of our nation, cut down by the agents of the vile Earth Federation on the eve of his revolution. We should all honor him by accomplishing what he always dreamed of doing. Now tell me Admiral, is everything in place to…facilitate the transfer of power?"

Theresa glanced at the young man and, once again, she was astonished at his level of determination, cunning and ruthlessness. Zeon would need every one of those traits if it is to survive the coming war.

"It is," Theresa replied quietly. If the man was willing to speak to her about his plans here, it must mean he was confident that no one would overhear them. "The coming years will be trying, but with these new industrial reform and rationing, we will emerge stronger than ever."

"Excellent, I will inform my father of the news. I'm sure he will be delighted to know his plans are moving forward. I look forward to our next meeting, Admiral."

"I'm sure we'll have much to discuss in the coming days. Give my best wishes to your brother. I understand he has found love even in these trying times."

"I'm sure Dozle will be honored to hear you that say that. I hope young Thalia is well? I don't see her with you very often these days."

Theresa understood the veiled threat and she scowled underneath her veil. The man was absolutely despicable and utterly merciless. Someone like that was exactly what Zeon needed if it wanted to be free from the oppression of the Earthnoids.

"It's not her safety you should be worried about. When your father makes that announcement, every malcontent on Side 3, never mind the Federation, is going to be gunning for your family." She glanced at him and saw that he seemed thoughtful for a minute.

"Then we'll just have to give them an outlet for their agitation as soon as possible, now won't we?"

Gihren Zabi smiled and moved to return to his father's side. "Good day, Admiral."

The two did not notice that their entire conversation by been overheard by the boy trailing next to the casket.


	3. Chapter 3

~ UC 0078 ~ Space Fortress _A Baoa Qu _~

A sense of some titanic event occurring soon filled the vacuum of space around A Baoa Qu. Every soldier and civilian contractor on the massive space fortress knew that the Zeon commanders were planning something big. Zeon Intelligence was cracking down on all laser communications to and from the base. Security was getting tighter every day and Intel was getting more and more paranoid about Federation sympathizers.

Every day, more and more warships arrived at the hub of the Zeon Space Forces. Entire squadrons of brand new _Musai-Class_ cruisers supporting the new deadly particle cannon fresh from the dockyards of Side 3 maintained constant patrols around A Baoa Qu. Conveys of _Papua-Class_ transports ferried supplies from the colonies to the asteroid.

Most of important of all were the new weapons of war pioneered by Zeon military engineers. The brand new MS-06 Zaku II was quickly replacing the few MS-05 Zaku I's which were issued to active regiments. The focus of the Zeon military complex had shifted away from the use of capital ships in favor of the more versatile Mobile Suit and the new ships and bases of the Zeon military were being refitted to meet their new vision.

Countless ships were returning from the docks of Side 3 with new mobile suit hangers and countless more were having their refits carried out at the space fortress. The station itself was swarming with military contractors as they worked to mine out the asteroids in order expand the base to house the increased garrison. Transports arrived with weapons and supplies and departed with vital minerals which will be used in turn to create more instruments of war.

The huge bulk of a Helium-3 tanker from Jupiter overshadowed all the other ships in the area. The supermassive transport carried the most vital resource in the Earth Sphere. Helium-3 was both the lifeblood and downfall of modern technology. The rare element is used to power the fusion reactors of both ships and mobile suits, allowing relatively clean and safe energy. However, the element had to be harvested from the dangerous high gravity atmosphere of Jupiter. If Zeon's supply of Helium-3 disappeared, the entire military would break down.

The station was now so crowded that the crews of the various ships had to wait for their turn on the base and only the most prominent Zeon officials were allowed to reside on the base. The space around the massive space fortress was packed with ships on stand-by mode, their reactor output lowered to levels needed to simply maneuver the ship to conserve power.

However, one vast sector of the fortress perimeter was empty and ships were warned to stay away.

* * *

Ensign Thalia Lisara sat in the cockpit of her brand new MS-06 Zaku II and waited for her orders while reading through the instruction manual for the new machine. She and all the other cadets who graduated from the Royal Zeon Military Academy in Zum City had taken a basic mobile suit piloting course. The academy had taught them using modified Zaku I's with their main mono-eye replaced with simulation computers.

She had graduated from the academy a month ago and had been shipped to A Baoa Qu with ten other junior officers on one of the Musai cruisers being transferred to the base. She had struggled to hide her excitement at the news because she knew the massive military buildup and the recently enacted draft meant that the fighting was imminent.

Against all odds, Side 3 had been reborn under the leadership of the Zabi family as the Principality of Zeon. The Federation embargo did not break their spirit and Zeon was now a hundred times more powerful than it had ever been. They had pushed back against the embargo and other colonies had followed their example. Side 6 had declared their independence from the Federation a year ago and more were bound to follow as they realize they can beat the Federation.

Thalia realized that times were hard for the average citizen of Zeon but it was a price well worth the eventual independence of all Spacenoids.. The military buildup had created critically needed jobs to jumpstart the stalled Zeon economy after the implication of the Federation embargo. However, overpopulation was still a critical issue and rationing was being enforced in order to ensure the military had all the resources it needed.

Unfortunately, not everyone had been strong enough to endure the hardships of the last ten years. At the very beginning of the reformation, traitors and Federation sympathizers had conspired to murder the Zabi family. The plan was foiled but had cost Zeon the life of Prince Cicero Zabi and permanently scarred Prince Dozle.

Thalia's mother had refused to allow the then ten year old Thalia the opportunity to attend the grand memorial service at the newly built Royal Palace with her. During the service, Prince Gihren had delivered a fiery oration condemning the vile assassins who would betray their people and home in order to please their Earth-born aristocratic masters.

When the Sovereign had issued his call to arms in order to expand the Side 3 Guard into a full-fledged military, millions of men answered the call. Servicemen were paid in credit bonds which were eligible to be traded for money after the political situation in the Earth Sphere stabilized. Many people saw this as a chance to make a better life for themselves after the war.

By the time Thalia graduated from high school, the vast majority of her follow students were enlisting in the Zeon military. Thalia wanted to do her part in helping to free her follow Spacenoids from the oppression of the Earthborn Elite. Her mother had reluctantly secured her a position in the most prestigious military academy in Side 3 so she could train to be an officer.

* * *

Thalia's attention was drawn back to the present as the voice of her squad leader, a Lieutenant Ludd, rang out over her helmet speaker. The man was near fanatical in his hatred of the Federation. His mother had been exiled to Side 3 and his father killed for voicing their support for more autonomy for the colonies. Thalia's squad consisted of her, Ludd, a middle-aged man named Evans, a younger man named Richards and a woman a few years older than Thalia named Riley, all of them now piloting the new Zaku II's.

Thalia joined the channel her squad was using for their training exercise. "Lisara here, I've reset the computer and all systems show green."

The rest of the team all began to checked in and Thalia took the time to recall what she knew about her teammates in the short time that she had known them.

Sub-Lieutenant Ryan Evans was a large and sociable man in his mid-thirties. He had been an immigrant from Side 7 who moved to Side 3 six years ago with his family. The man loved to show them photos of his old restaurant and vowed he would open one on Side 3 when his tour ended. He was the squad's executive officer.

Petty Officer Selena Riley was a slight and kind woman who had enlisted with the military right out of high school and placed into the Space Attack Force's mobile suit division after scoring above average in the simulators. She said she was going to become a teacher after the war.

Finally, Petty Officer Jonathan Richards was a thin and proud man that many considered a mobile suit prodigy. The man had been drafted only recently and was already posed to jump to the rank of Sub-Lieutenant. Thalia had seen his piloting skills and she was impressed. The man had jumped into the simulator without any experience and scored higher than most Zaku I veterans.

Thalia returned her attention to the monitor as Ludd signaled for them to begin the exercise.

* * *

The mission is rather simple. The team is to perform a battle launch from a Musai Cruiser, then destroy a squadron of five Federation fighters with support from a Salamis Cruiser and then dock with the Musai again. The targets are all simulated and the weapons they be will using are special training weapons designed to simulate the real thing. When they pressed the trigger, the computer performs the necessary calculations and determines if they 'hit' the target. The rounds they will be firing off will be blanks in order to stimulate proper recoil and avoid accidents. If they suffered any simulated hits, the computer will respond by disabling the 'damaged' parts of their machines.

Thalia waited impatiently as the hangar door split open and exposed them to vacuum. The plan calls for them to launch one by one with the Lieutenant in the lead. Thalia will launch last, and the waiting was already starting to get to her. She wanted to prove herself as a good pilot but so far her performance was only above average.

"This is Ludd, I'm launching now."

"Richards here, launching."

"Evans here, launching now."

"Riley here, I'm taking off."

Show time.

"Lisara here, launching."

As she activated the deck catapult, she was shoved in her chair and her head smacked painfully against the back of her helmet. Suddenly the mobile suit shot out of the ship and she regained her senses in time to immediately fire the rockets on the back of her machine and speed off in the direction of the rest of her squad.

Ludd soon confirmed that they were all assembled. "Alright team, let's do this one nice and clean. Take formation D and advance on the targets. Thalia, you provide fire support while we cover Evans' approach to the Salamis."

The squad moved into a rough delta-shaped formation with Evan's machine in the center. Thalia fired a small burst from her maneuvering thrusters in order to slow her down and soon lagged behind the others.

Evan's machine was equipped with a MS Bazooka so he was assigned the task of closing with the enemy capital ship and using it to destroy the ship. Thalia's machine was given a MS Long Rifle and her job was to knock out as many of the enemy interceptors as possible before the two forces collide.

Thalia activated her targeting computer and armed her weapon. Zooming in on the enemy formation, she saw the aerodynamic fighter crafts the Earthnoids seemed to love and snarled in disgust. The savages were too weight down by gravity and did not truly understand space the way the Zeons did.

She waited as the fighters came closer and closer. There was no effective range on her rifle but the anti-armor round did have a travel time. If she fired too soon, the enemy would just scatter. So she waited.

When the enemy entered the five kilometer range, she lined her sights on the outer-most fighter and fired. The massive recoil from the weapon nearly sent her machine into an uncontrolled spin but she quickly fired her thrusters and managed to stay on target. She lined up on another machine and fired again. Then she fired again. And again.

By the time she fired her fourth shot, the first one simulated round collided with one of the fighters and machine instantly turned into a fireball that continued forward. The other machines immediately broke formation but not before the second round destroyed another fighter. The third round missed its target but it forced a machine to evade into the path of the fourth round. The bullet impacted with the bow of the fighter and the machine seemed to crimple in before exploding in a ball of flame as the oxygen tank ignited.

Thalia was ecstatic as she witnessed the result of her marksmanship. She had never gotten more than two fighters before! If she could repeat this in a real battle, she would be considered an ace in no time! She would prove to everyone that she earned her position instead of relying on family connections.

With the two remaining fighters breaking off to engage her squad, Thalia knew it would be futile to try and hit them now. Instead, she turned her attention to the Salamis cruiser and set her sights on one of the missile pods on the side of ship. It was much slower than the fighters so she had a good chance of hitting it with some luck on her side. She fired the final two rounds in her magazine before she had to reload her rifle. Her Zaku carried three spare magazines strapped to the machine's left leg while its right leg held a special magnetic clamp that could secure to a ship.

By the time she had manipulated the machine controls into changing the rifle's magazine, the two rounds she fired impacted with the Salamis cruiser. The first entered the missile pod but it failed to detonate the charges the way she hoped. The second, however, did its job well because the pod immediately exploded and left a gaping hole in the hull of the ship.

"Evans, I made a nice big target for you to hit!" Thalia reported as she saw Evan's machine rapidly close to distance to the ship.

The older man laughed heartily, "Haha! Thanks Lisara, glad to know all that expensive education and training didn't go to waste. Your instructors would be proud to know you can hit the broad side of a really big barn!"

The response caused Thalia to smile. She liked Evans. The man reminded her of her old caretaker. Always ready with a joke to lighten any situation. Thalia shook her head and returned her attention back to her targeting computer.

Evans needed to be nearly point-blank range for the bazooka round to not be shot down by the Salamis cruiser's point defense guns. The same guns that were about to target him and fill his machine with flak. Thalia switched her attention to the rest of her squad and her heart swelled with pride.

As the rest of the team had scattered to track down the two remaining fighters, Richards quickly destroyed one with an accurate burst from his machine gun before activating his jets and spinning 180 degrees to line up with the remaining fighter. Another burst and another explosion. The man had destroyed the two machines in less than four seconds.

That just left the Salamis. Thalia primed her rifle and took aim at one of the spherical flak turrets on top of the ship. She steadily fired off two rounds before switching targets to another turret. Her first two shots missed but her third hit the flak turret and the entire pressurized firing cabin exploded.

* * *

By then Evans had closed to less than five kilometers and armed his bazooka. He activated his jets for more speed and rocketed towards the wounded capital ship. The flak rounds bursting around him were starting to lessen as Thalia knocked out a second turret and the rest of the team moved in behind him to draw away some fire.

Four kilometers,

Three kilometers.

Two.

One.

He was now so close that the ship dominated his entire main screen. He could see the hull breach in the middle of the ship Thalia had caused. Torn decks plating was visible and a successful detention inside the hull of the ship would crack it in two.

Unfortunately, his proximity to the ship meant he was now within the firing arc of one of the rear point-defense guns. The dual-barreled turret opened up on his machine and his screen suddenly showed that his machine's right leg was 'damaged'.

"Damn," Evans muttered as he closed to five hundred meters. He quickly aimed the bazooka and fired off two rounds before turning and firing the remaining three rounds at the bridge of the ship. He saw the gun which had been firing at him seconds ago turn to track the rockets soaring towards the top of the ship's command tower.

Suddenly, the turret was riddled with rounds and exploded. Evans' jaw dropped in surprise and turned to his rear camera. He saw Richards firing on the remaining point defense turrets.

"Remind me to get you drink after our shift ends, the entire team's drinks are on me." Evans broadcast to the team as he activated his thrusters to turn around and head back to their Musai cruiser.

* * *

The rockets slammed into the inside of the ship and gutted it. The explosions twisted the entire super structure of the ship and it soon tore itself in half down the middle. The remaining rockets slammed into the bridge and the entire command tower blew apart as the high explosive round ignited the air inside the ship.

Thalia smiled as the scene froze and soon disappeared into the blackness of the training space. Checking to make sure that everything was in order. She opened the channel with Ludd.

"Should we return to the Musai, sir?"

"Good work everyone, that was the best run we had yet and one of the cleanest executions in the company." Lieutenant Ludd congratulated them proudly.

"How about that drink for saving your ass, Evans?" Richards boasted and Thalia could clearly picture the grin on his face. The man had an easy confidence that was almost infectious.

"Yea. Yea. I remember. Don't drink so much that you die of alcohol poisoning now, kid."

* * *

**Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I could use some advice on proper battle scenes. It's not a gundam fic without nice awesome battles! Of course, any review or advice is welcome. I wanted this chapter to show off Thalia and her friends' mentality. I tried to copy lot of the stuff from things Germans did in the 1930's. I hope I did a good job with the descriptions and I hope people didn't get annoyed by the long introductions. So far, I understand the story has been light on action. **


	4. Chapter 4

~ UC 0078 ~ Musai Cruiser _Sahaquiel _~

Thalia awoke at 0600 ship time and lad in bed for another ten minutes while thinking about the events that occurred three days ago. The team had performed very well for only their third actual sortie in the Zaku II's. The company commander had given them the honor of being designated MS Team 01. The team had been transferred from the space fortress onto one of the ships yesterday. The Musai they were now stationed on was one of the newer models which sacrificed additional hanger space for a re-entry vehicle.

Unfortunately, the ship's hangers only had space for three mobile suits. That meant maintenance of the team's five mobile suits was going to be an absolute pain. Two machines have to be stowed away on the re-entry vehicle's cargo holds and then manually transferred to the main hanger when they needed maintenance. It also meant that only three of their machines had the benefit of a launch catapult during combat operations.

Ludd had informed the team that Thalia and Riley were to be stationed on the Komusai before the start of combat until further notice since Thalia's machine was unlikely to charge into close combat and Riley was to act as the team's rear-guard and help protect the ship.

A hand lightly shook her shoulder, "Thalia, wake up or Ludd is gonna have your ass for being late." Thalia turned her head and saw that it was Riley. The older woman had a bemused smile on her lips.

"I'm up! I'm up!" Thalia weakly protested as she opened the sleeping bag hooked up to the wall and floated out of her sleep alcove. The women's rest area on the ship had its walls lined with the small rest alcoves, allowing the crew to sleep without floating around and suffocating on their own carbon dioxide.

The Musai had a crew of just fewer than one hundred people working three shifts. Thalia's team was, officially, to remain on stand-by at all times since they were the only mobile suit unit on the ship. That meant they spent most of their time in the simulators or working on their machines with the engineers. It also meant they had a lot of free time on their hands while the ship made its journey from A Baoa Qu to the Zeon forward space fortress at the newly hollowed out asteroid of Solomon.

From what Thalia had heard around the ship, Solomon was supposed to be Zeon's forward base when the war with the Federation finally breaks out. The base could be easily supplied from the neutral colonies of Side 6 and was practically right on the doorsteps of Federation Space Command at Side 1. The trip was to take about a week, which meant the team had some more time to get accustomed to their machines.

The ship was traveling as part of a massive flotilla of warships and transports as they redeployed from A Baoa Qu to Solomon. Thalia's head seemed to buzz with a sense of both anxiety and excitement. She knew she was not the only one on the ship eagerly anticipating the first shots of the war. The night before, the off-duty crew and Thalia's team had meet up on the ship's rec-room to listen to Supreme Commander Gihren's address. They had cheered when Gihren once again condemned the vile acts of terrorism by Earthnoid spies. Thalia's face had contorted into an angry snare as Prince Gihren called on the loyal citizens of the Quintzem colony to fight back against their traitorous brethren and promised swift and righteous retribution to the traitors who had stormed the government building.

Thalia could not believe how low those traitorous dogs, who dared to sully the name of all Spacenoids, could sink. She knew that some weak-minded people would be unhappy over the harsh living conditions in Zeon. Spacenoids had always led harsh lives as they struggled to survive in space after being banished by the Earth Elite. But Zeon had showed the entire Earth Sphere that the colonies were not weak, that they were a sturdy and industrious people who did not need the Federation.

However, for these traitors to openly attack their brethren and attempt to defect back to their old slavers was just unthinkable to Thalia. How foolish could they be? Did they honestly think the Earthnoid would welcome them back with open arms and mountains of supplies?

Thalia banished the dark thoughts of last night from her mind and followed Riley into the locker room. As the duo entered the rotating gravity deck, she gracefully twisted herself around with the ease of one who had lived in space her entire life and touched down onto the slopped deck. Thalia walked to her locker and took out her towel before she stepped into one of the shower tubes in the back. After putting her clothing into one of the laundry bags, she activated the shower and braced herself as what felt like a wave of water slammed into her and tossed her around like the ship was spinning out of control. As suddenly as it started, the water was sucked out of the chamber and Thalia dried herself with the towel before wrapping it around her body and exiting the chamber.

She returned to her locker and picked out a set of fresh clothing. The dark green and gold uniform of the Zeon Space Attack Force never failed to draw out a feeling of pride no matter how many times she wore it. Their current situation reminded Thalia of the stories she listened to during her childhood about the oppressed villagers taking up arms and driving off the evil king.

After she finished putting on her clothing and pulling her shoulder-length light-blonde hair into a short ponytail, Thalia waited at the door to the mess hall for Riley to finish and, soon enough, her friend appeared and waved at her.

"So Selena, what do you think about the news from home?" Thalia asked, as the two of them grabbed their food from the wall dispenser and took a seat at one of the empty tables. "I heard the Federation's supplying those rebels with weapons and money. They must be getting desperate if they're willing to support a rebellion in Side 3 itself."

Riley looked thoughtful for a moment before replying, "It's probably true, each side is trying to gain as big an advantage as possible before the fighting starts. If the Federation can incite a civil war in Side 3, well….let's just say that it won't be pretty for us."

Thalia scowled at that, "It's a damn dirty tactic is what it is, they'd waste their money trying to get scum to fight for them. Only those stupid Feddies can think that Prince Gihren will let their plot succeed. I bet he's got a plan to put an end to that rebellion already."

Riley gave her a strange smile before changing the subject, "So have you heard the rumors? They say that Prince Dozle is going to be personally overseeing the Solomon Task Force."

That instantly brightened Thalia's mood as a wide smile split her face. "That's grand news! My mother says Prince Dozle is an exceptional officer and that we'll be in good hands under his command."

Riley went silent, so Thalia returned her attention to her food. It was surprisingly good, but she remembered her mother telling her that a space deployment always started with good food but it will get worse and worse as all the fresh vegetables and meats run out until they were served nothing about stale biscuits and flavored gunk.

As the silence dragged on, Thalia tried to start another conversation to lift the awkward mood. "Selena, have you always lived at Side 3?"

"No, I used to be from Side 2 but my family moved to Zum City after Zeon Deikun formed the Republic."

"Oh? How does it compare? I lived in Side 3 my entire life. My mother said that the Federation would probably arrest me if not outright kill me if they found out I entered their territory. I hear the open colonies are rather beautiful."

Talking about her old home seemed to peak Riley's interest because she proceeded to beam brightly at Thalia before launching into an excited ramble about her childhood memories of Island Iffish, the colony she was born in.

However, before she could finish the story, the ship's alarm drowned out her words before an announcement came over the ship inter-com. "Ensign Lisara and Petty Officer Riley to the hangar. Lisara and Riley to the hanger. Immediately."

The two women exchanged confused looks for a second before they both jumped up and run for the exit. Thalia wondered what this was about. The team was not expected to assemble for the day until 0070 which was still twenty minutes away. However, as the two got closer to the hanger, another alarm sounded.

"Attention, all crew to your stations, repeat, all crew to your stations."

Something big was happening. Thalia doubled her pace and checked behind her to see Riley doing the same. The two left the gravity deck and entered the hangar. Thalia was in such in rush that she nearly bumped into Evans.

"Hey Evans, do you know what's going on? Where's the Lieutenant? "

Evans turned to look at her with a grim expression on his face and Thalia felt something anxiety grip her heart.

"He's on the bridge, in a briefing with the senior officers. The flagship just received new orders. A small formation, this ship included, is to detour to Side 3 and put down the rebellion. They say that Federation black ops teams have swarmed over the colonial guards stationed there and taken control of the entire colony."

"So our mission is to go in and rescue the hostages, right?" Richards asked as he entered the room.

"That's right, our ship, along with two more Musai cruisers, is to assault the colony and secure the vital government installations." The team saluted as Ludd entered the hangar. "A special response team is already on station at the colony, they'll be responsible for capturing the Federation spies while we provide the muscle."

Thalia felt a mixture of fear and excitement rise in her body. This was going to be her first real battle. She wanted to distinguish herself. How well she performed during this mission could set the pace for the rest of her career. This was one of the first real battles where Zeon was employing their new Mobile weapons. They were making history with this battle and military engineers will be taking their mission apart to determine the effectiveness of the machines.

"Everyone, suit up and do a checkup on your machines one more time. We'll be entering Quintzem space in around two hours. Dismissed"

The team immediately broke up. Thalia turned toward the hangar changing room and quickly slipped out of her uniform before putting on her pilot's suit. She left the hangar with Riley and the duo descended into the Komusai's storage bay.

Thalia quickly scanned her machine for any external problems before floating into the cockpit and powering up the fusion reactor. She performed a diagnostic scan of the machine and grinned when everything returned as green. After checking that fuel and ammunition had been replenished since their last exercise, Thalia leaned back into her chair to grab a quick nap before the battle.

* * *

~ UC 0078 ~ Musai Cruiser _Sahaquiel _~ Space Colony Quintzem ~

The task force held position near the primary space gate of the colony. Thalia could tell heavy fighting had already taken place because she see could see wreckage of at least three other Musai cruisers floating around the colony. The massive habitat itself was had suffered some damage as well. Thalia counted at least three hull-breaches that had yet to be sealed.

Their small fleet had been surprised to see the so-called 'special response team'. It consisted of a mighty crimson Gwazine battleship and another two Musai cruisers. According to Ludd, the fleet had arrived from Zum City and had been blockading the colony since the start of the rebellion. The plot seemed to reach all the way to the top of the colony's government because colonial defense forces had opened fire on them as soon as the fleet was detected. Which explained the wreckage; the traitors had been no match for the mighty Gwazine.

The team had assembled in the ship's briefing room along with the ship's captain and other senior officers. The captain activated the laser-communications system and a familiar face appeared on the main screen.

The assembled soldiers all snapped to attention and Thalia smiled. "Admiral Lisara, ma'am, how can we be of service?" Captain Torus asked.

Her mother returned Thalia's smile before turning her attention back to the ship's commanding officer and her face turned somber. "Captain Torus, as you probably already know, I'm here on direct orders from Commander Gihren himself. The Federation has finally overstepped its bounds and today we will expose their atrocities to the entire human race. I need your men to board the colony and assist my forces in capturing the Federation spies who orchestrated and equipped this uprising."

"Yes Ma'am, I understand, with your leave Admiral, I'll go make preparation for the operation."

"You're all dismissed, good luck. Captain, I want your task force to patrol this sector. If any rebels escape, I'll notify you."

As the room's occuptants saluted and started to file out of the room. Thalia's mother hesitated before speaking, "Ensign Lisara, a word if you will. Captain, some privacy?"

Captain Torus hesitated for a split second before snapping a crisp salute, "Of course, Ma'am, I understand." The rest of the team left the conference room and Thalia smiled as Riley gave her a reassuring nod.

Thalia returned her attention to her mother and was about to speak when she was cut off, "Thalia, I don't have much time, but I just want to tell you something. This will be your first real battle. Now, remember, this is extremely important. I want you to stay as far back from the main lines as possible. Provide long range support against fortified enemy positions if you have to. Just watch out for rocket attacks."

Thalia gave her mother a reassuring smile, "Don't worry mother, I'll be careful." She turned her smile into a wide grin, "besides, I wasn't planning on charging into melee and using my rifle like a club anyway."

The joke worked in lightening the mood and her mother smiled before growing sober again. "Just remember one thing Thalia, this is very important. Do no, I repeat, do not, under any circumstances, unseal your pilot's suit. Better yet, keep your Zaku sealed at all times and avoid any enemy fire that can cause a hull-breach."

Thalia's confusion must have shown on her face because her mother gave her a thin but reassuring smile. "It's probably nothing, but just remember what I said, my dear. Know that I love you and good luck."

"I love you too, mother, I hope to see you again for New Year."

The Admiral smiled sadly, "We'll see dear, stay safe."

* * *

~ UC 0078 ~ Space Colony Quintzem ~

Thalia's Zaku II slowly drifted toward the colony. The team had spent the last half hour working to calibrate the Zaku's for operation under gravity in preparation for the fight inside the colony. This was Thalia's first time piloting the Zaku II under gravity. She had trained in mobile suit operations under gravity during her time at the academy, but the course had only lasted two weeks and she struggled to remember what the instructor had taught her.

A mobile suit was a lot like a tank, it might be a god of death and destruction but anyone brave or foolish enough to actually engage it on foot with the correct weapons and the element of surprise had a pretty good chance of succeeding. A mobile suit was most vulnerable at its knee joints and back thrusters. A heavy-weapons team with a wire-guided missile launcher hiding in a good position can easily take out a mobile suit if they knew what they were doing.

Another danger Thalia had to be careful for was sappers. The Zaku II she piloted was not equipped with anti-personal airburst bombs. If an enemy were to just run up to her while she had her machine locked down for better weapons stability, she would most likely not even notice as he rigged her machine to blow.

Thalia shook off her paranoid fears and returned her attention to the operation. The team was to enter the colony through one of the external docking bays while the two other mobile suit teams entered through the primary space gate. Her mother's fleet had deployed two additional teams to cover all avenues of escape and a Komusai carrying a Zeon Special Forces team. The main objective was for the mobile suits to cut a path to the colony government center and allow the Special Forces team to capture the rebel leadership.

As the team floated closer and closer to the front of the colony, below the massive space gate, Thalia saw the other teams enter the colony. Ludd's Zaku II Commander entered the military override code into the maintenance hatch and the door slid open. The team fired their maneuvering thrusters and slowly entered the airlock. As they landed on the colony, the team magnetized their machines to the steel bulkhead.

As the airlock began to pressurize, Ludd's voice broke the silence. "Alright team, one last systems check before we proceed. This will be our first combat operation. I expect you all to perform up to expectation. For Zeon!"

"For Zeon!" The team responded as the inner airlock finally opened and the team moved forward with Richards taking point and Riley bringing up the rear. Soon, the team arrived on the other side of the colony wall and opened the door into the colony.

The inside of Quintzem was a beautiful sight. Crystal clear lakes and river crisscrossed the landscape. Sunlight shone into the colony through numerous glass panels opening into space and highlighted the well-maintained grass and trees. Suburban homes dotted the landscape and further into the colony, Thalia could see the large building complexes of downtown Quintzem. Clouds hang in the center of the mega structure and Thalia say hints of a blue sky above her. Directly above the team's position was the space port. The metallic end of the colony was disguised as a mountain.

However, the idyllic picture was marred by numerous signs of war. Thalia spotted at least a dozen fires raging through the down-town area of the colony and she saw numerous destroyed houses in the residential district. Their target was the city hall in the heart of down-town Quintzem.

"Alright team, the main force will break through the space gate and draw their attention. The plan is for us the hit the rebels as they redeploy to the stop the other team. Be careful and remember to aim carefully. There are still civilians living here and a stray shot could decompress the colony."

With that, the team followed Ludd as he jumped slowly out of the hatch and down the mountain. Thalia followed the rest of the team down and instantly felt gravity take over her machine and she grimaced as her safety restraints dug painfully into her chest. She fired her maneuvering thrusters to keep her Zaku upright and occasionally fired the main rockets to slow her descent.

Eventually the team landed and Thalia let out the breath she did not know she was holding with a sigh of relief. She put her Zaku into a steady slid down the slope of the hill and remained crouching as the team assembled on flat ground.

The voice of the second team's commander sounded in Thalia's helmet. "Attention MS Team 01, the main force has encountered light resistance at the space gate. I advise you proceed to the main objective and we'll follow behind you."

Ludd immediately responded, "Roger that, you heard him people. Spread out and advance into the city. Watch the windows."

As the team entered downtown Quintzem, the team was met with almost no resistance. Their only contact with the enemy was a Federation issued jeep armed with a machine gun that opened fire and then turned to flee immediately upon seeing the massive war machines. Richards had taken it out with a single shot from his machine gun.

"Ludd to Admiral Lisara, we've sighted Federation equipment."

Her mother responded after a few seconds, "understood, it's just as we anticipated. Proceed with your mission."

As they advanced further down the streets of Quintzem City, Thalia was rather unnerved by how empty the colony felt. She had grown up in Zum City and the colony was packed with people. Massive towers dotted the landscape and only a few well-preserved, and expensive, locations had any semblances of nature. "Where is everyone?"

"They must have ran for the shelters, which was probably a smart move." Evans remarked offhandedly

"But how did they know we were coming? There doesn't seem to be much damaged for the uprising to have been that bad." Riley asked.

"Probably just being cautious, hide in the shelters until we come to save them. Seems like a smart idea", laughed Richards, "and good for us, now we don't have to worry about hitting any civilians. Anyone still here must be a rebel or an idiot. Neither would be missed."

"Cut the chatter, this is still hostile territory, still alert", Ludd reprimanded, "according to the map, city hall should be just ahead, less than five kilometers. There should a massive plaza between us and building itself. Thalia, find a nice vantage point and tell me what you see. The buildings are blocking my vision."

"Roger", Thalia replied before activating her rocket and jumping onto a squat-looking three story building. The thing looked like a parking garage and the office building next to it offered good cover for her machine in case of enemy fire. It was as good a concealed firing position for a mobile suit in urban combat as she could ask for.

Moving her machine into a kneeling position and aiming her rifle over the roof of the office building, Thalia had a clear view of the colony's central plaza. The city hall was directly in front of her. It had a large statue of Zeon Zum Deikun in front of it. Parallel to City Hall were the colony courthouse and the colony defense headquarters. The buildings had seen better days, because most of the windows were shattered and the defense HQ had been hit by what looked like a high-explosive missile.

However, what caught her attention was what was protecting the buildings. A single Zaku I, armed with an MS Machine Gun.

"Sir, I got a possible rebel mobile suit, Zaku I, in front of City Hall. I'm not detecting an IFF coming from it. Orders?"

There was a slight pause before Ludd responded, "Hold your fire for now while we surround the building and wait for the Spec Ops team arrive, we don't want them to escape."

"Roger that, sir!" Thalia enthusiastically responded. This was it! Her first real contact with the enemy and the fool was sitting in the open, practically begging her to destroy it.

Thalia steadied her breathing and pulled the targeting computer out from next to her head rest. This shot would be easy compared to combat in space. Everything was standing still, she did not have to factor in the target's momentum and direction nor did she have to keep control of her own machine's flight. Thalia took aim at the machine's cockpit and waited.

After five minutes, Thalia began to grow restless. The machine was still in front of her and had barely moved, only bothering to occasionally turn its head around to scan the surroundings. It obliviously had not detected her yet, but every second she waited, she risked the chance that it will see her and sound the alarm. Fortunately, a few minutes later, Ludd voice sounded over in her helmet.

"Alright, Ensign, we're all in position .Take it out, but be careful you don't hit the reactor."

Thalia immediately pulled the trigger. The concussion of the rifle shattered every window in the office building. The Zaku I's mono-eye turned toward her position a split second before the round impacted with the machine's cockpit. The round punched right into the Zaku I and detonated immediately, blowing the machine clean in half at its waist.

The rebel's response was rather lackluster, Thalia thought, as only half a dozen figures appeared at the various windows of the building wielding nothing more than machine guns and rifles. The Special Forces team's armored half-track raced out from behind the courthouse and rammed a hole into the walls of the city hall, all the while completely ignoring the small arms fire. Thalia saw a squad of soldiers in sealed suits storm out of the rear hatch and rush into the building.

"Alright team, secure the area. Leave the rest to the foot soldiers." Ludd ordered.

Thalia sighed. There does not seem to be anymore targets that she could deal with. Her rifle was not designed to combat infantry and if she tried to take out individual enemies through the windows, she would most likely collapse the entire building.

After a dull twenty minutes of nothing happening, Thalia's sensors sounded as it detected people approaching her machine. Thalia's eyes widened in alarm as thoughts of sappers and rockets flashed back into her mind. However, as she turned her main camera to the sensor contact, she sighed in relief and chuckled at herself.

A small crowd of civilians had emerged from an nearby underground shelter and slowly edged forward to get a good view of Zeon's awe-inspiring new engine of war. Thalia smiled as she saw people snapping photos and a group of children jumping up and down. The sight was heartwarming and Thalia felt pride fill her chest. These rebels were an oblivious minority. The people of this colony were still loyal citizens of Zeon.

Against her better judgment and every sense of logic in her mind, Thalia turned her machine to face the crowd and manipulated her machine's left arm into a salute. After enjoying the crowd's attention for another minute, Thalia decided she had pushed military policy to the limit and activated her external speakers.

"Attention all civilians, this area isn't safe yet. There are still rebels in the area. Please, return to your shelter, this is for your own safety. Don't worry, though. The situation is completely under control. The military is here and we'll wipe out the rebels within the hour. Please stay in the shelter until we give the all-clear signal."

As the crowd, began to slowly disperse, Thalia returned her attention back to the plaza. With a sigh, she realized that absolutely nothing had changed. The enemy seemed to have been cleared from the upper levels because she did not see any more rebels through the windows and someone had time to raise a Zeon flag over the building.

Suddenly, a klaxon started blasting in her cockpit and red warning lights flashed across her console and main display. Thalia's face paled as she say the warning indicator and a split-second later, the voice of the Special Forces team leader confirmed her fears.

"Priority alert! Priority alert! All Zeon forces on Quintzem Colony, we have a confirmed release of G3 Nerve Agent. Repeat, confirmed release of G3 Nerve Agent. Seek shelter immediately. Seek shelter immediately!"

Ludd's voice immediately cut across the repeating warning, "All MS Team 01 members! Check your cockpit and suit seals immediately. Purge your cockpit air, then activate the emergency filters and air tanks."

Thalia checked her displays. Her machine was sealed against all forms of biological, chemical and radiation based weapons but if something had damaged her machine….

She reached up a shaking her to check her suit status display on her right wrist. The screen was normally used to check suit integrity and monitor thrust-pack fuel levels. Thalia sagged with relief as she saw that everything was clear. She let out a shaky breath that she realized she had been holding.

"Lisara here, everything seems to be secured." Thalia leaned back into her chair and sighed again. Her heart was still racing and she realized now that the initial adrenaline rush following the warning had passed, she felt every tired. She absent-mindedly flushed the air inside her Zaku's cockpit and pumped in new sterilized air filled with chemicals designed to naturalize chemical and biological weapons.

She had learned about the deadly nerve gas during her days at the Academy. It was supposed to be one of the deadliest weapons mankind had at its disposal. It had been designed to bypass standard air filters in order to inflict massive causality. The symptoms were immediate and absolutely horrifying. Victims start to hemorrhage from every opening after only a few seconds of exposure to the gas. Death was guaranteed. One small container was enough to wipe out a colony. Her mind shook with the ramifications of what had just occurred around here. Even a small canister of the gas was enough to kill everyone on Quintzem. The rebels must have released it in the face of capture. This small group of rebels had just killed over five hundred thousand people.

Suddenly, realization struck her. G3 gas was extremely difficult to manufacture and heavily guarded by both the Federation and Zeon forces. The terrorists had access to Federation equipment. Zeon Intelligence had stated this operation was led and funded by Federation black ops.

Thalia quivered with rage.

How dare they?

What makes them think they had the right to snuff out an entire colony of people? The Federation attempting to starve the Spacenoids to death had not been enough. So now the Earthnoids just planned to outright murder all of them.

"Sir! What are our orders?" Thalia demanded. She felt so helpless in this situation. No matter how powerful her machine was, no matter how accurately she aimed or how well she piloted, there was absolutely nothing she could do.

"Hold your position! Wait until we sort this out!" Ludd all but shouted into his com.

Thalia snarled as she turned off the alarm. Suddenly, something caught her attention and she froze. No, she thought, no no no…

People were starting to stumble out of the underground shelter like they were in a drunken stupor. They fell and bumped into each other constantly and many collapsed to the ground.

Thalia releashed a pain sob as her machine picked out the horrifying sound of their death cries. She saw men with blood pouring out of their mouth and eyes. She saw women hold their children in death grips as both spasmed and twisted into unnatural positions. Thalia reached out a shaking hand and turned off the cockpit speakers and main view screen.

What she did was completely against military regulations since she was still in a warzone. She would not be able to respond to any threats that emerge, but Thalia just could no longer bear the horrifying situation outside her sealed machine.

The Zaku II suddenly felt like a coffin and she was overcome with an intense sense of claustrophobia. The inside of her helmet felt like a furnace and she felt like she was suffocating. She knew it was almost suicidal to unseal her helmet but the feeling of being trapped inside the helmet was almost overwhelming. She shut her eyes and clutched the side of her head. Bile rose up her throat and she felt like she was about to vomit.

Suddenly, she heard soft cries of fear and screams of pain. She opened her eyes and saw that the speakers were still disabled. The helmet communicator link was currently closed and on lockdown as all channels was being used by emergency response teams. Then, realization struck. She was hearing it in her head. The cries grew louder and louder until it was all she could hear.

"Stop it! Please, just stop!" She screamed but to no avail. She was just imagining it, she told herself, and it was just trauma, it was not real. She kept telling herself that but the cries continued. Thalia fought to shut out the voices, afraid that she was going insane. Eventually, after what seemed like a lifetime, she managed to wrestle the voices out of her mind. The overwhelming sounds of fear and death slowly faded.

Eventually, her head cleared as her other senses returned. With a jerk of alarm, she realized her nose was bleeding freely. Panic threatened to overwhelm her as she pictured herself dying like the people outside. Fortunately, she had managed to regain some of her composure by then and she checked her suit display. Everything was clear. Forcing herself to claim down, Thalia told herself that it was just because of the stress, because if it was the gas, she would be dead or bleeding a lot more heavily.

As the screams slowly died down, Thalia could still feel an oppressive atmosphere weight down on her mind. The voices were no longer overwhelming, but they were still there. Fortunately, she had managed to calm herself down enough to be functional, so she reactivated the main screen and speakers.

Averting her eyes, she turned the screen toward the plaza and saw that a cloud of greenish gas had filled the streets of the colony.

"This is Admiral Lisara to all surviving Zeon military personnel. Abandon the colony, all forces are to return to your ships and await further orders." Thalia was about to obey, when a private communications request opened up on her secondary monitor.

Thalia shakily keyed her communicator, "Ensign Lisara here."

Her heart swelled with childish comfort at the voice that emerged from the speaker.

"Thalia! Thank god you're alright! Is your machine secure? If so, retreat to the main space gate for immediate withdrew."

"I understand mom," Thalia whispered, "I'm moving now."


End file.
